By Nasser d. Khalili [Worth Press, 186pp., 2005]

Creating a general survey of Islamic art is a bold move. There are already quite a few on the market, so it is hardly uncharted territory. For a new publication to make an impression, it has to be different. Originality of approach is Nasser D. Khalili’s major contribution to the field. He is well known as a collector, but less so as a writer. With one of the greatest collections of Islamic—and other—art, he is in a good position to produce a comprehensive view of a little-understood field.